Google Street View: iPhone Style

There has been a lot of talk about Google Maps.

Most of it has to do with being able to use street view on an iPhone, but recently, Google updated their images and locations and now I can actually view the house I grew up in!


Am I a little bit creeped out? YES.
Is this totally cool? YES.












I really do love street view even though its creepy and awesome.
It makes my life a lot easier and I hardly ever go anywhere in NY that I don't know ( or recognise from my google street view). Which for me, is pretty comforting.


Some interesting facts.
3/4 of my roommates have iPhones.

We love them.

Sam my roommate, northwestern alum and fellow blogger, uses her iPhone (which she got from work) primarily as a map. She is very happy to have the iPhone, but unlike me, doesn't use many applications, hardly checks her email, and really uses it as a way to maneuver around the city. Debating if this feature makes up for the price tag is not the issue here. What I find more interesting, is that today, we definitely rely on google maps.

I remember the days when I used mapquest, always waiting forever for my printer to print out the horrible directions that usually took me around my location, rather than directly there!

Thank god we have evolved since those days.

Thank god for google maps.

Gmail Themes Make Me Smile

Gmail themes are here and they are GREAT.

Last night my roommates told me about their gmail themes and now I am happy to announce that I finally got them too! What took them so long to pass this fab. feature to me!?

Although they are seriously distracting, I am anxiously waiting for more themes to be published.

Thank you GMAIL, for making me smile --
any excuse for my email to be pink is a GREAT THING.

And yes, I have chosen the Cherry Blossom theme.

* to those who don't have themes yet.. just be patient. This is well worth it!

Are more people jumping into the Social Media Boat? Are these tools becoming mainstream?

So, lets face it.

It is almost November, and I've had a lot of time to think... It has been two months and I'm still unemployed. But, I'm not discouraged, and instead, I just (jokingly) refer to myself as a housewife - A housewife who is 22, runs errands, decorates her apartment, reads blogs, plays online and on facebook... A LOT.

I know that I love the digital space. I know that I love SMM. So, what do I have to say? What have I been thinking about? What trends have I seen from those around me?

Everyone is finally jumping in!

Remember last year, when people thought I was crazy for being on Twitter? When they didn't even realize that Perez was a blog? Well, I'm happy to say that life is really changing..

Everyday I have more and more friends on Twitter. And I don't mean fake friends that I have never met. I mean real friends. Friends that I have real FB pictures with. My friend and peers are finally not only just registering with the site, but really, truly, using it. Of course, we all know that a lot of businesses are on Twitter, and it truly is exciting and engaging for me as an active consumer. But, what is more important than shopping (especially in this economy)?? My friends! I love knowing about my friend's whereabout, thoughts and cool links!

I am guilty.

I am guilty of responding to facebook status updates. It's fun. It's geeky. And let's face it, if were gonna stalk, let's be honest about it! So yes, I still love facebook, and I don't think its going anywhere. My friends on FB are really using their status updates. Hourly! Sure, everyone freaked out when they made the new facebook, but no one I know has boycotted! Instead, my friends (yes, my real friends) are attacking and using facebook like never before.

Speaking of "like never before," my friends are also blogging and it is very exciting.

One of my good friends, Ryan, has been blogging for a few months about his experience abroad in China. He uploads pictures and continues to share his experiences exploring, eating and enjoying his time abroad. I love when a new post from ShangHais and Lows, his very clever title, shows up in my RSS feed. Also, I know that Ryan's family and friends (especially his mother!) are obsessed with his blog, and perhaps his new blog is inspiring these people to think twice about this new medium.

So, recent grads / college students, are we using social media to stay in touch with friends, make new ones, or for professional reasons?

I think that we are really taking the leap into the digital landscape like never before!

Lets keep it up!

Girls and gaming: Would you rather race a car or watch a fashion week fashion show?

Sure, when I was a little girl I played with Barbies. Then I got older and like my brother, discovered the world of video games. I played Sonic when we had our Sega, and then I seriously played Mario tennis when we got N64. And I was good!

And then I outgrew video games.

For me, computer games became the new video games, and a game where I could create plays that came to life, control people or families, and build roller coasters became games I played. And then I kind of outgrew these games and instead spent my time on AOL and then AIM and then I got older and became obsessed with social applications ie facebook (of course).

But this post isn't about facebook.. shocking, I know... It's actually about games. More specifically it's about iPhone applications.

As I have already said, I am NOT a gamer.
I like fashion.
and I like technology.
I would consider myself kind of a chic geek.
So, I downloaded the Style.com iPhone application, and I have to confess: I'm kind of in love.

This application is fabulous! While sitting on the train, or in the doctor's office I was able to watch some beautiful fashion shows and read some very cool posts from the Style.com site. Personally, I would rather watch a Fashion Week fashion show then play some boring, addictive game.

Now, I'll be honest... I really did try out the games!
On my way into the city, I had about an hour to kill, and decided why not go a little crazy and download some games.
I downloaded the iDoodle and Anaconda applications.
I figured these two applications would be a fun throwback to my beloved microsoft paint program and the nokia snake game that I loved.

But, after a few minutes I was not that impressed. Thankfully, I have plenty of other ways to entertain myself with my phone. Playing unimpressive, trivial games really didn't do it for me! Maybe there will be more girly games in the future for us divas to play on our iPhones, but for now, I'll have to stick to the applications I've got!

I know that Chanel already has an iPhone application. And yes, I have already downloaded it. Will this be a trend? Will more fashion forward brands expand their horizons to reach more of their consumers via their phones? Not a bad idea....

So girls.. Am I alone? Who else would rather peruse the latest fashion than play a game?

Summer 2008: A look back through social media... Thank You Twitter & facebook

Inevitably, as we begin this labor day weekend, one question comes to mind...

Has another summer passed us by already!?

The answer is YES!

My summer (another wonderful summer) has come and gone in an instant...

But, I did something very special for the summer of 2008... or what I will now call...

Summer 2008: 2.0.

This summer, as I traveled around the country, I thought it would be a very cool thing to blog what I was doing. I decided to tweet and facebook my summer by updating where I was and uploading photos. * see picture below.

Although it was certainly challenging to find time to do this... You have to imagine & realize that we were constantly traveling from place to place... (and part of the challenge was having enough cell service in the middle of the desert or while white water rafting .. thank you AT&T )

But, rest assured, I managed to update quite a few times with my whereabouts thank you my beloved iphone! But, I already went on a rant on my obsession, so let me continue for a minute.

As I often struggled to update my whereabouts and watch my 29 campers, I often would think... Is this really worth it? Who am I really doing this for? Sure, my friends got a kick out of following me and stalking my every move. My friend and PR gal @lexandthecity shamelessly stalked me and commented on my whereabouts.

But, when push comes to shove, (gasp!) I DID IT FOR ME!

For as long as I have been blogging and reading blogs, I have been a huge fan of Chris Brogan. Every time I meet him, he is the most encouraging and down to earth guy out there! I recently read a post he wrote about personal branding and how important it can be.

When I think about it, all of my tweeting and facebooking over the summer contributed to my personal online branding. All of my connectivity lets you, the reader or stalker or friend, know a little bit more about me. I like to think that my branding isn't just extra noise, but instead meaningful and interesting...

I must admit, it was pretty cool to update my whereabouts, especially now when I look back and can see where I was and what I was doing. But the funniest part about this is that I wasn't the only person to do this. My kids were also updating their facebooks telling their friends (and anyone who would listen) where they were and what an amazing summer we were all having! Coincidence? I think not... It just goes to show you how incorporated into our lives these tools are.

Summer 2008: Can we really survive without internet or cell service?

Hello World...

Fret not, I am back... for good.

I bet you thought that I forgot all about you! Well, my little blog, you are incorrect!

This summer was unbelievable. I spent the last 9 weeks as a counselor at my camp in Pennsylvania. But this was no ordinary summer spent in the mountains. With my 29 campers, I spent four weeks traveling across our beautiful country.

As I traveled from PA to California, Arizona, Utah, Nevada and Colorado, I had a lot of time to think ... just not exactly time to write.

This post is all about connectedness.

Hey Blogosphere:
Ever wonder what its like to not check your email every hour? What about not checking your mail everyday?
Ever wonder what its like to not use a computer for 2 weeks?
How about sleeping in a tent?

I remember listening to a PodCamp Boston lecture last fall, where the speaker suggested that we only check our email twice a day. He said that everyone's addiction to clicking that reload button killed our productivity. At that time, my class and I chatted about how unbelievable this idea was! Was this guy seriously only checking his email 3 times a day and surviving to talk about it!?!

This summer... that lecture became my life.
and I had major withdrawl.

At camp, I was busy. Running around, hanging out with my kids, lucky to check my email for 10 minutes every 2 days. YES, seriously... only 10 minutes every few days. oh and no cell service... did I mention that?

However, I was so wrapped up in my world @ camp that I hardly realized what I was missing back out in the real world. With no time to even sit down and realize how disconnected I was, I didn't realize that I hadn't read the NYT and didn't know about the changed facebook.

Then I left for my trip and everything changed.

ENTER IPHONE.
CUE HEAVENLY MUSIC.

My life changed exactly one week after the launch of the new iphone. If you have seen this blog at all, then you will realize that I am slightly obsessed with my computer, the iphone and musicals. For one year, I have rather impatiently waited for the announcement and launch of the most amazing gadget to ever hit my hands.

and lets just say... its hardly left my hands in these 6 weeks.

Having the phone on my trip was incredible. Not only was I able to reconnect to my friends and family, but as far as I am concerned, having this phone just made my life as a counselor easy.

We needed a restaurant ... iphone to the rescue.
We needed a movie theater... iphone to the rescue.
We needed pinkberry... iphone to the rescue...
(clearly I was traveling with 15 year old girls...)

Looking back, it seems almost ridiculous how much I relied on this device to connect me. But, today... its just normal (for me and my generation).

What I learned is that there is a great divide between my generation, the generations directly below and above me. Let me explain:

The Youngins: My 15 yr olds are beyond. Beyond what you ask? Beyond everything? These are kids who have been video chatting for years. Girls who, at age 15, have blackberrys and can hardly sit through a movie without texting and BBM'ing...it is sad... but true!
MARKETERS, PAY ATTENTION HERE: these kids are impressionable, smart and willing to spend!

Although the girls (and boys) weren't allowed to have cell phones on the trip (and none of them did) they (BRACE YOURSELF) weren't dying without them. This is the amazing part. Sure they missed them... but they adjusted to life without a cell phone. And somehow, they survived...

The older counselors who were also on the trip ... we're talking late 20's... thought that I was crazy because of how connected I was. Although I had my phone, and could text and sometimes browse the internet, still felt relatively unconnected. I wasn't at my maximum connectedness.

Now, trust me when I say, I understand that I am not normal.

The average girl my age isn't so into electronics and certainly isn't as tech savvy as I am. But, chances are... she texts just as much as I do. Most likely, she is attached to her phone in some way.. even my most un-techie friends are obsessed.

So how did we get like this?
I don't have time to delve any deeper...

But this summer I learned that we can (sometimes) survive without being connected 24/7.

Totally blogalicious? Are college students reading blogs?

This semester I completed a research project for my COM research class. My group project was centered around one main question:
Are College Students Reading Blogs?

The answer, my friends, is very simple.
And scary.
NO.

Out of the 105 students we surveyed, only 27 said that they read blogs!

We surveyed 25 students at BU's student center and the results we found were very interesting.

• significantly more males were reading blogs. (64%)
• it seems like female students can't actually identify what sites are blogs..."is like Perez Hilton a blog?"
• NO ONE (we surveyed) read more then 10 blogs! (SERIOUSLY!)
• While 74% of respondents spent 10-30 hours on the internet a week, 75% of respondents spent less than 5 hours a week reading blogs.
• Word Of Mouth is an incredibly powerful medium in college circles

These statistics really surprised me. Sure our sample was made up of students from the different colleges at BU. But it really seems that college students either don't want to, or don't have time to emerge themselves in the blogosphere. Although it doesn't surprise me that there aren't students from the health sciences school represented in our survey, I would think that more students from our College of Communication were reading blogs.

My question is how are communications students gonna keep up today's fast paced media landscape?

Sure, I do know some students that keep blogs. But these students are RARE! Most people who know me as a blogger think I'm slightly crazy. Blogs, seriously Danielle?

It's true!

Don't get me started on what they think of Twitter. I explained twitter to my interactive marketing class and people thought that I was nuts!


Should more colleges push students to be active online? Should they introduce students to different social media sites? Should it be integrated into everyone's education?

Are you a college students who reads blogs? What do your friends think?

Social Networking Goes Shopping @ Wetseal.

Have you read this?

Wetseal has started an online community.

In the spirit of Cher Horowitz from Clueless... AS IF!



How hilarious... now we can go and create, share and buy our favorite wet seal outfits!

What a great way to get all the Miley fans out there to spend some time online & spending money.

How GOOGLE and APPLE saved my life... this week

There is less then one month till graduation.
ONE MONTH.

How and when did that happen ?

Everyone I speak to asks me the same question.. " Can you believe it's your last semester already?"

I always answer this question the same way... "I know, it's absolutely crazy... time is flying."

The truth is.. TIME IS FLYING.
EXCEPT WHEN I GOT A BIG PUSH BACKWARDS LAST WEEK.

This past weekend I was in florida for my grandma's birthday and my computer crashed. Specifically, my hard drive failed... MACBOOK users: beware! This IS an epidemic.

God forbid my life should be easy, right?
But this catastrophe was not a complete disaster for a few reasons: aside from my external drive - Mainly I have been saved by GOOGLE & APPLE.



*this is the story of the past 2 weeks of my life and how I have been putting my computer, semester and life back together. piece by piece. document by document.

1. Thank god for Google. Well, google and the fact that my piece of sh*t printer doesn't work. Let me preface this with the fact that for the last YEAR I have had to basically email myself every document that I wanted to print... SO ALL MY WORK IS ONLINE.. very interesting...

With all this talk of earth day and a Steve Rubel's paperless office and the macbook air, this week I really valued having all of my documents online because surprise surprise, all my stuff was easy to find.

In all honesty, I never thought of all my stuff being on gmail/googledocs as something I did for a purpose or something that would ever help me.. I believe that this move was simply evolution. No one said to me, "Danielle, use googledocs... or email EVERYTHING to yourself." I just did it, because it was natural and because it was easy... ANOTHER PERK TO BEING A DIGITAL NATIVE?

In the old days (as my father always reminds me) we (he) was afraid to keep important documents, calendars and emails online because he was afraid of servers crashing and loosing everything. Today, as our technology continues to pave the way for keeping local and network copies of our documents, it seems that this fear will soon be erased. Just as we looked at floppy disks as crucial revolutionary devices, maybe soon our harddrive, as we know it today, will be a clunky waste of space since everything will be online?

Just a thought.

Google isnt the only thing that saved me during this recent episode.
THANK YOU APPLE.

What I have learned throughout my history as an Apple customer is that when apple is good, they're REALLY REALLY good!

Say what you want about their culture, their brand, their products: I don't care.
In my opinion Apple's fabulous in store customer service amazes me. over and over.

Sure, first I got an idiot to help me... which really rather annoyed me. But the MAC Genius that handled my computer was AMAZING.

These people know what they are talking about and that makes me happy and VERY IMPRESSED.

They loaded my computer with Leopard, which I had been holding out for. I am getting used to spaces and all the other cute new programs. Yes, I am the loser who took the guided tour and then watched it again with my dad when I showed him the cool new features, which he thought were great.. (like father like daughter)

My story ends here: But my suggestion is to mess around on the APPLE MUSEUM WEBSITE. A very cool site to play... even though it kinda stops around 2004 or 2006 ... but for a cool girl like me, its a fun resource.

Bloggers: What are you listening to? How are you feeling?

For my Mass Communication Research class, my final project is focused on college-age student's blog readership habits.
My group has started doing a lot of research and the results we are finding are startling and scary. (but more on that later)

However, what we have quickly learned is that our generation used to blog before they even knew what blogging was.
cue the music please: ENTER LIVEJOURNAL



Live journal was this great tool that many high school and middle school students were using (circa 2002!) to stay connected to friends and update them on cool things going on. Not only did it serve as a micro community, where you could connect to your friends, and see what other people were doing, but for a melo-dramatic HS student (as so many are) it was an awesome place just to vent.

My friend and I were talking about livejournal the other day and she reminded me of a cool feature called "Current Mood Current Music?"

At first we laughed at this idea because seriously, Is there anything more childish than listing your mood on a blog? Like how much more punk'ed out, melodramatic could this idea be? But then we thought about the idea of sharing your feelings. Sure we share ideas and feelings on our blogs today, but LJ gives us a a medium to spread an EXACT message.

What I remember being obsessed with was the music choices.
I loved starting posts with the following musical-theater-obsessed album art: some popular shows and rare geeky gems.



Sure, this might seem childish.. but its kind of a cute idea...
Oh and what I'm listening to / watching right now: ( I guess I've sort of grown up!)

Interior Design Goes Digital... sort of

This is a Pixel Couch.
How awesome / hideous!

Only a trendy geek of a certain magnitude would dare incorporate this into their home decor.





To me it seems like the type of thing you love to hate.. But I have to admit: It's kinda awesome!

PRSSA goes 2.0: BU New Media Conference

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending: PR advanced: PRSSA goes 2.0.

What a fabulous, thought-provoking and busy day it was!

Since I always love the chance to emerge myself in all things PR and New media related, I was very excited to chat with some wonderful peers, alumni and new media superstars!

Truthfully, the conference was a bit repetitive and I would have enjoyed a few more case studies and a little more application of these tools in PR... but the day reminded me of why I love this new arena.

So here (in no particular order) are the 5 new, interesting, relevant, and amusing things I learned yesterday:

1. Blendtec.com video: Although I was horrified at the thought of blending up an iPhone, the PR value of this video and its over 4 MILLION views proves to me that these interactive channels are here to stay!



I love the fact that this company took their blenders for a spin and used social media to its full advantage. Youtube is great + hilarious. I love people that are creative and think outside of the box... I mean, I do have a leopard business card after all.

Thank you David Meerman Scott for showing us this video.

2. Change is awesome, but scary.
While this industry seems to be changing everyday, I do often feel overwhelmed as a college student who is trying to understand and use these tools in my own life. Facebook, please. That's a no brainer. Twitter, really pretty cool. Flickr, Yeah sure. OoVoo, gotta get checking this out. For now, I just want to find a balance and really incorporate these tools more into my school work. Which I am doing... but more on that later...


3. Geeksugar.com AND Popsugar.com/
Obviously, I am instantly addicted to any site that can combine fashion, entertainment and a taste of technology trends. I have added these to my reader.. hopefully they have some cool content and fun, interesting reading material. A favorite recent post: Do you like being disconnected? I love this question because I think about it all the time... Although being disconnected is scary (and I will be basically disconnected this summer) .. it's kinda nice to take a break once in a while... (but I might go crazy!)

4. I remembered what I love so much about PR... making FRIENDS/ creating RELATIONSHIPS. While this certainly seemed to be the theme of the day, I was reminded that these relationships are incredibly important. Weather we are chatting with bloggers, journalists, reporters, fellow PR ppl, or consumers - everyone is important and most likely has something interesting to say.

5. Networking in person is exhausting but exciting! No wonder we are doing this online these days! But to be honest: I do like a little face time with people. I had the chance to meet some great people from some PR firms I would love to work for and speak to some really cool people!

Where are college bloggers? HERE I AM!

I have been inspired.

While there are seriously a million (or about 10) other things that I should be doing right now, there is one thing that has caught my attention.

In Julia Roy's latest post titled "Dear Marketing and Communications Students," she wonders where college aged bloggers are...


And well, here I am... but this is a question that Julia is not the only blogger to ask. I have been wondering the very same question. Not only for myself, but for my communications research class project. See, I am keeping my social media obsession very much alive! 

Blogs are such valuable tools for soon-to-be grads for a few simple reasons:
1. we can learn about / get in touch with industry trends
2. we can meet people.
3. its impressive to employers (or at least that is what I am hoping ) (ill get back to you on this!)
4. and once again, we can meet people!

So where are my fellow bloggers?
1. are we too busy? I do have trouble finding time to pursue my SM, but I am always thinking about it. I had a show, midterms and break in the month of March -- but I'm a loyal blogger... back for more! 
2. are we not being taught to do this? Just because it isnt assigned, why can't we do some extra writing? It certainly wouldn't hurt!
3. If I am intrigued by your thoughts/opinions in class, couldn't we all benefit from sharing ideas online too?

more on this later.

iphone + facebook... how much cooler can one commercial get?

You might have seen this apple commercial recently.



I find it very interesting for a few reasons.

1. Clearly, they are targeting active facebook users. As facebook continues to evolve (on what feels like a daily basis,) it seems that users are spending less time using this social network. I think its particularly interesting that this commercial is all about facebook, and more specifically, the need to "check facebook" everywhere you go, all the time. I'll admit it, I am one of these people. Apple does a great job reaching out to high school and college students. But, why is this commercial being aired after the holiday season? Didn't students just buy (or get) their expensive gifts of the season? With no drop in price, why is this demographic being targeted? and are people being swayed by this commercial? Is anyone sitting, watching TV and suddenly they realize that because they can check FB they are gonna go and buy this product?

2. Here is my big big big question. NOW, DON'T HATE ME...but I've been troubled by this idea.

DO WE NEED TO CONSTANTLY BE IN CONTACT?

This is something that has really been plaguing me recently.
My dad has decided that he no longer needs to be attached to his PDA.
I had a blackberry for approx. a month and returned it because when push came to shove, I just didn't need it! (GASP!)
The thing is, do we need to be so damn connected?

When I am home I always have my computer handy. Weather I am playing online, facebooking, etc. But, do I need to do that when I am away from my computer?
Can't we survive without facebook and email for an hour?

*Note: I do plan on getting an iPhone soon. Clearly, I am obsessed. I have been waiting for the second generation waiting for them to get all the kinks out. If anyone can tell me when it will be out, I will be forever grateful.

thank you.

I am a WOMAN -- a young, modern 2008 outlook to being a W - O - M - A - N

There has been a lot on my mind recently.
Unfortunately, I have been so busy with work and school and rehearsing for my show, that I have had little time to post.
But, rest assured... I have plenty to say.

I have been thinking a lot about how women are being marketed to both online and offline. Yes, there was the superbowl a few weeks ago (see, I really have been busy). Sure, there were some cute commercials with some interesting messages... thank you Victoria's Secret. Thank you Sun Silk ... Whatever. But what I have been thinking about is the messages that TV has been sending me. There are 2 new TV shows that I have been checking out, Cashmere Mafia and Lipstick Jungle. Both shows similarly portray powerful, successful women. Great message, right!? But, these women also face major struggles due to their inability to balance their crazy, chaotic lives. (honestly, now that the writers have their jobs back, lets twist these shows around and give these girls some substance. Ok, thanks. ) Sure they can afford fabulous clothing and an extravagant lifestyle.. but this show seems to suggest that's not enough. With viewers tuning in to check out where they go, what they are wearing and what bag they are carrying (not to mention the iphones in last week's episode), is that all this show really is? Sadly, it seems that not one of the women on these shows is strong enough to handle their social lives/family ties and their businesses which is inevitably leading charactors to have affairs, divorce and inner turmoil - which of course can always be healed with a hug from a close friend or a drink.

Is this what my generation has to look forward to? Are you saying that we really can't have fabulous shoes, a great job and blissful married life? Was Carrie Bradshaw right? Can we ever really have it all? Sure maybe one day we will get to be president... but will that be enough?

Nowheremen.net -- A trendy combination of TV and social media?

I get really excited when the spam-ish daily emails that I have signed up for end up being interesting and relevant.

Every morning I get the latest headlines from NY Times, Boston Globe and Daily Candy, and usually I delete them. But today, something caught my attention.

Daily Candy (if you're not an avid reader) is a daily email with cool, trendy things going on both online and in a major city near you. Sometimes the emails are about a fun restaurant or a store opening, but something about today's headline "GOODTV? Nowhere, Man" encouraged me not to slip over this one...

I mean, like any other college student, I do have my TV obsessions (although finding time for them is my challenge). I mean who can seriously resist an episode of Project Runway?
But today, Daily Candy provided me with something that I had to look into. NOWHEREMEN.NET.

The first sentence of the email referred to the writer's strike and the serious lack of new GG episodes. Instantly they had my attention (talk about knowing their target audience). You can imagine how relieved I was to know that I wasn't the only one missing the weekly dose of Gossip Girl drama.

Moving right along.
The website that Daily Candy shared with me today is from a new online phenomena called nowheremen.net where a social community has formed around this online mystery webshow.
As you can imagine.. there are a few things I found quite interesting about this.

As the writer's strike continues and unfortunately it looks as though it may continue for a few more weeks. (Just enough to cancel a few more of my favorite events) I am not enthused by the fact that my only choices to watch on TV right now are American Idol and Biggest Loser, because honestly, Reality TV doesn't do it for me. (Call me crazy, but I don't like people singing badly. It annoys me!)

Today as consumers, we have the ability to choose what we see, when we see it and that got me thinking about this interesting online TV show. Participators on the site are showed video "episode" clues and together this community can search for answers to find the main character, Derek. This social reality online game is totally weird and totally different then anything I have ever seen... however, the fact that the site's registered users can post videos, pictures and join groups, seems to ring a familiar bell.
I don't really understand this "game," but that's not really what is important to me right now.

What interests me the most about this website, is that fact that it is outsourcing TV entertainment as we know it and making it interactive! This seems to me like a serious combination of TV and social media. How cool! Bringing people together, online, around a series... Has this been done before? Of course, Gossip girls has their own blog, and people check it out and can share whatever they want, but I don't think that strangers have ever come together quite like this!

And what does this mean for the future of my favorite TV series? Although I can watch episodes online from my favorite shows, will I be turning to the internet in the future for my entertainment?
Although to me, this webseries has a FOX's 24 feel, will it be enough to to fill our void with the inevitable high dosage of reality TV this year?

McDonalds Shocks Us Again... Will Lattes be featured on the dollar menu?

Lets play a little game,

It's called name the first thing that comes to your mind...

When I say BOSTON you say...

FREEZING (especially today!)

When I say STARBUCKS you say ...

Expensive coffee that isn't very good, but you buy it regardless.

When I say McDonalds you say...

Cheap, bad ambiance, and of course FRENCH FRIES

not coffee, right?

As you might have heard, McDonalds will soon be brewing up fancy coffee beverages.

When I think of Vanilla Lattes and Caramel Cappuccinos, I don't think of McD's...

But maybe soon I will.

There are a few things that I find really interesting about this latest move.

As I have already demonstrated, I just don't think of McDonalds when I'm in the mood for a coffee beverage. Call me materialistic or vain or whatever you want, McD's is a child's restaurant, a greasy fast food chain -- NOT a cool, relaxing place to get a coffee and veg out.

Will this change? who knows.

Coming from NY, there has always been a "cool factor" associated with Starbucks. Walking around the mall, or my high school (welcome to Long Island) it was cool to have a starbucks drink. Sure, I was young. Sure I just wanted to fit-in. But McD's was NEVER cool. It was never trendy to walk around with a happy meal. Will it be cool to walk around with a McD's latte?
I DOUBT IT.

Now, not to get all political on you, but there seems to be one thing on everyone's mind with this upcoming election.
THE ECONOMY.
So, the big question in my mind (regarding this whole thing) is:
Will Americans sacrifice ambiance and trendiness to save a few bucks?
Will Mc'D expand their McWorld?
Will I ever really walk into McD and order a McLatte?

Only time will tell.

A New Year... A New You? (Will My Social Media Obsession Continue?)

Happy New Year.
How is it already January 6th?
I can't believe that its been nearly a month since my last post.
And as you can imagine, I have plenty to say.

1. My social media wrap-up from last semester.
I guess due to finals and then leaving for winter break I never had an opportunity to do a "look at me now...how did I get here" post. The truth is that if you had asked me 6 months ago, I never would have guessed that I would be involved in this community. I have enjoyed learning and adapting social media into my life and my everyday routine (thank you google reader). I think that what I took away most from the class last semester was not only the friends that I made (old and new), the ability to share what I have learned , but most importantly this wonderful, smart and engaging community that I appreciate and look up to.

Now, I did say something here about being involved in this community, and I sort of feel cheap saying that. The truth is that I am not as involved as I could be. Or as I want to be. So this leads me to my next section.

2. Happy New Year... Now what's my resolution?

Like most people, I often make a little resolution for myself. Sometimes that means better organization, not just saying I will, but actually cleaning my room, or of course the infamous hitting the gym more frequently. But this year, due to my social media obsession my resolution is gonna be TWITTER.

The thing is, I need to be more active in this community. I don't think that updating my blog is enough. The problem most frequently is that I don't actually have enough time to do everything I want to, but that is why I am saying it right here right now. I want to get more involved.
boom.

(well see if it happens... but I usually am pretty true to my word... except for the cleaning my room... but its not that bad!)

Are you there God, It's me Danielle... Has there been a technological evolution affecting Religion?

I just got back from a 10 day trip to Israel and it was great. This trip marked my second time traveling in Israel. Last year I was lucky enough to go on Taglit-Birthright (which is such an amazing experience). If you are under 25 and jewish, get your butt on a birthright trip. It's a real no-brainer.

Walking around the old city of Jerusalem (one of my favorite parts of the trip) was really an amazing experience. Not only can you see the way that your ancestors (jews, christians and muslims alike) lived, but you can see where they shopped, ate and prayed. (duh)

But, it's not until you go to the Western Wall or Kotel, that you can appreciate the long and unbelievable history that makes Israel so special. A visitor to the western wall ascends the Western Wall Plaza, separates from the men they are visiting with, and walks towards the grand wall which reaches only 105 feet towards the sky. Upon entering the area I looked around and took in everything that I saw, trying to understand what exactly makes this area so holy.

Please understand that this post is not intended to be in any way an overly religious post. I'm going somewhere related to technology and social media, I promise.
Let me move on to my next point.

What you see in front of you however, are women (or men) praying by themselves. This is a picture of me and my grandma. Sure there are many people praying, but how could jews from long island give up this photo-op?


What astounds me is that for only a few years (since 1967), Jews have been allowed to come to this section of the wall. Considered the holy of the holy, the site of the first temple from the 10th century BCE, today, Jews come from all over the world to the Wailing wall to pray and leave notes (prayers) for god.

Finally, my point.

Jews are people who have been forced to constantly evolve. The story always goes: they tried to kill us, we are still alive, lets celebrate aka eat.

So heres my big question... Why are we leaving all these notes in the wall? And why haven't we found a better way to do this? Why are we leaving scraps of paper at the holyest place there is?
Ding Ding Ding
Can we do this electronically? Have we evolved this far? Has web 2.0 at all affected this practice?

I asked my rabbi who we were traveling with to answer some of these questions, but I what I came across when I returned home was really even more interesting.

This first site, gives a good summary of how and why we started leaving notes in the wall, and how routinely they are collected and buried. Blah Blah Blah, this is the history etc.
However, we have really evolved. This links to a site that I found even more interesting. It really shows just how interconnected we all really are and how internet 2.0 how connected people in more ways then I could ever imagine. It is amazing to think that you can send you note to god half way across the world using the internet, and volunteers will print it out and put it at the wall. Such an unbelievable concept.

Sure it's not the same feeling, but giving people around the world a chance to participate in something cutting edge and new ... sounds pretty savvy to me!